A Walk Around the World
by Soundspeed
Summary: Tales of the war, its beginnings, and its aftermath, told through the eyes of others. A collection of complete stories pertaining to characters and happenings outside of Aang and his friends.
1. Prologue: The Long Road

I don't claim to own any aspect of _Avatar: The Last Airbender._ This work has been written without permission and is not intended for any profit.

Truth be told, I've actually wanted to do this for a long time. There are probably dozens of other versions of this exact same concept from various authors, but I've decided to finally throw my own ideas into the mix.

Basically what this is is a collection of short stories. My aim with these stories is to tell tales of what happens to some of our favorite (and not-so-favorite) characters outside of what we see in the series. That being said, Aang and friends will most likely appear very, very little, if at all. So don't expect to see too much of them (barring some exceptions, of course). Most of these stories will be unrelated one-shots, though some may be two to three chapters. Nothing too long. This is going to be a fun little exercise in spontaneity for me; nothing's really been planned out ahead of time. I'm writing what comes to mind as I go here, so we'll see how it turns out.

* * *

_**A Walk Around the World**_

**Prologue: The Long Road**

The day was an unusually warm one, it seemed, and Firelord Zuko began to find his ceremonial robes a bit uncomfortable. They were superfluous, that was for sure, but did they have to make them so unbearably hot? He considered discarding the outer garments in favor of his traditional crimson tunic. _Was that proper?_ He was the firelord, after all. Then again, who was going to say no to him?

He smiled as he unceremoniously undid the broach around his neck and let the cumbersome robes fall into a nearby chair. An attendant would pick them up and bring them to his quarters later; he was sure. He was the firelord, after all.

Without giving a whole lot of thought as to where he was going, Zuko found himself stepping out onto a nearby balcony. The precipice overlooked the adjacent Fire Nation town; from his vantage point Zuko could see the buildings and houses surrounding the palace. He saw their inhabitants as well, each one pushing and bustling through their own daily minutia, each one absorbed in the microcosm of their life and the lives of their loved ones, each one not just a faceless, disposable soldier, but now a real person, with a real life and real dreams.

The sight caught Zuko off-guard for some reason. True, he'd seen the spectacle many times before…but had he actually _seen _it? Had he actually cared to look into the face of his people and address them before this? _No,_ he mused, _I suppose not_. Until quite recently, the only thing Zuko had discerned in a conversation was whether or not the person talking to him had an arrow on his forehead.

"I thought I'd find you here."

The interjection startled the young firelord and he turned around rather quickly. Zuko caught sight of his "attacker" and eased up considerably. "Mai?"

She looked him over, though all any outsider would have seen were her eyes shifting downward for a split second. On a clear day. "You look dignified," she quipped. Mai was garbed in ceremonial dress, as Zuko had been. But if the heat was bothering her, she didn't do much to give it away.

"I was warm," he said lamely.

"Um…this is the _Fire Nation_, right?" A faint smile played on the edges of Mai's pale lips.

Zuko didn't bother to reply. Instead he shifted his gaze back out onto the city sprawled out before him.

"Come on," Mai prodded, approaching the firelord and silently slipping her left arm around his waist. "What's on your mind?"

Instinctively, automatically, Zuko returned the simple gesture. "It just feels unreal," he finally said after a period of awkward silence.

"What?"

"This entire situation," he continued. "I mean, here I am, and with everything I could have ever wanted." He squeezed Mai's hand as he said this. "And I didn't have to capture the Ava—Aang to get it."

Mai in turn nestled her head into Zuko's chest and said, "Why are you worried? You made the right choice."

"Maybe," he consented. "But sometimes I feel like I don't deserve it. I'm not ready."

Mai squeezed Zuko's hand back. "You're new," she said simply. "You've been firelord for what, three months now? I think you expect too much of yourself."

The firelord paused and let her words sink in and take hold upon him. As he did so a cool, gentle breeze cut through the warm air like the keen edges of his broadswords and he shivered a bit. Perhaps summer was finally releasing its smothering grip on the land and letting autumn take its place. And as he continued to look down upon the people, he realized that Ozai's grip had faded as well. He would have to be there to take its place, whether he was ready or not.

"Let's go back inside," Mai prodded suddenly, snapping Zuko out of his introversion.

"Why?" Zuko wondered aloud.

"Because it's raining, silly."

Sure enough, just as soon as Zuko gazed upward to confirm this phenomenon a raindrop landed square in his scarred eye, causing him to blink furiously for a moment. The water seemed to clear his head, wash away the remnants his father. "All right," he said, half laughing. "Let's go."

As the two made their retreat, Zuko couldn't help but think about how he had gotten here. It had been a rough three-year journey for the young firelord…he'd scoured the world looking for the Avatar, only to join forces with his former prey to defeat his father and reclaim the throne of the Fire Nation. He had taken a walk around the world and seen its people and its places. On the trailing winds of that thought, his mind turned to his friends and everyone he'd met along the way, and what their walks must have been like. He smiled as he walked hand-in-hand with Mai back into the safe confines of the palace. Their paths had been intersecting ever since their childhood. Zuko could only hope that they would continue to walk together long into the future, all the way to the end of the dusty road where the sapphire waves met pristine sands and the warm winds formed a soft yet unshakeable embrace and the sunsets were brilliant and eternal.


	2. Welcome Home

I don't claim to own any aspect of _Avatar: The Last Airbender._ This work has been written without permission and isn't intended for any profit.

I was watching "The Puppetmaster" the other day, and this just sort of popped into my head. Funny how that happens, huh? Anyway, I liked the idea, so I ran with it. Yes, I realize the title is the same as that Coheed and Cambria song off of Rock Band. No, it was not intentional. Don't try to hide it…I know you were thinking that!

Oh yeah, and I'd just like to note that Zuko's prologue was used purely as an introduction. I was not trying to imply that this collection would only cover people that he'd met. Thought I'd clear that up.

* * *

**Welcome Home**

"What is your name?"

The girl looked up at her adversary, met his stare straight-on, yet said nothing. Her sapphire-blue eyes burned into his crimson gaze, threatening to bore a hole through the back of his skull if he did not look away.

She was no older than sixteen and she was lovely; her dark hair cascaded gracefully around her small, round face and down her back, stopping just a little past her shoulders. She was dressed simply in a dirty brown tunic that still somehow managed to accent her slim figure despite its shabbiness. The girl knelt before the guard, held down by two other guards behind her.

The guard who had first spoken viciously backhanded the girl, incensed by her defiant silence. "I said, what is your name, filth? You will speak when spoken to!" There was only one way to deal with these Water Tribe vermin. The hard way.

If the prisoner was shaken by this assault, she didn't show it. Her icy gaze returned to the guard's face. "Kill me and save yourself the trouble."

He'd been expecting this. A great many of the Water Tribe people brought here had said the exact same thing…and more than often he was perfectly happy to grant their wish on the spot. But this girl…

He smiled wickedly. "You're a pretty girl." He turned and circled the prisoner, walking behind her back where she could not turn to see him, as she was still held down on her knees by the other two guards. "So pretty, in fact, that killing you would just be wasteful." He completed his circle, stopping once again in front of the girl and fixing her with his cold stare. "Now, if you don't cooperate, then believe me, there are worse things in store for you than death. A beautiful girl such as you has a lot of potential." He knelt in front of her and cupped her chin in his left hand. "So tell me," he snarled. "What is your name?"

The girl stared for a second longer, and finally her features softened. Her gaze dropped to the ground, and the metal walkway on which they stood pinged softly as her tears fell. "My name," she choked, a trace of defiance still present in her breaking voice, "is Hama."

The guard smiled and stood back up. "It's very nice to meet you Hama… You see, that wasn't so hard, was it? I can be personable when others do the same." To Hama's surprise, he actually cracked a small smile. "My name is Ken-Xing; I run this prison. You'll be seeing a lot of me, so I hope we can at least be pleasant.

"You'll quickly learn here that waterbending is strictly forbidden. In your cell you will be kept away from any water at all times except for when we allow you near it. On the off-chance that the thought even passes through your head and you attempt to waterbend, you will be severely punished." He motioned to the other guards. "Now…" he paused, considering the situation. The girl had defied him…her will could be dangerous if not addressed immediately. She would need to be broken. Swiftly.

"Take her to my quarters." The words descended through the air like a falling guillotine.

Hama's head snapped up and she gazed back into Ken-Xing's eyes. The tears ran freely now, her eyes hauntingly devoid of any life, of any hope. She said nothing, did not struggle as the guards carried her off, but continued to stare at him.

He laughed a cold, high, mirthless laugh. "Welcome home, Hama. Welcome home!"

Ken-Xing would make sure his guest was comfortable.

* * *

The steel was cold. That was the first thing Hama noticed as her sore, battered body hit the cell floor. However cold her metal cage was, though, it could do nothing to match the chill that had enveloped her heart. She felt so torn, so ravaged, that for that moment she wished for nothing more than to curl up in a corner and die. _Maybe I can reach inside myself,_ she thought bitterly. _I'll bend all the water out of my body until I wither away into nothing._

"Hama? They got you too?"

Hama looked up toward the voice she had just heard. After all she had just endured, the gentle timbre made it sound like a choir of angels, if not only for its familiarity. "Nomi?" she said in disbelief.

The cells were built in a peculiar fashion, they were suspended from the ceilings by chains, all spaced roughly a meter apart. The sides were nothing more than metal bars, however, so Hama could see her companion as she pressed herself eagerly against the side.

The other girl was slightly shorter than Hama. Her hair was just as dark, but cut short, barely reaching her shoulders. Her eyes were unusually light for one of the Water Tribe.

The girl called Nomi approached her cell's walls as well. "Yes, it's me," she said gently.

Hama almost broke into tears right then and there. "You don't know how good it is to see you…"

Nomi was younger than Hama by about a year. The two had grown up together in the Southern Water Tribe, until that fateful day when the first raids had begun. Nomi had been one of the first ones captured. Hama had long since given her up for dead. To see her again now was a blessing from the moon spirit itself.

Nomi smiled, and her eyes seemed to light up the room. "It's great to see you too."

For a moment, all the pain and indignity of Hama's experience at the hands of Ken-Xing was forgotten as she conversed with her long-lost friend. The room itself seemed to warm as they shared stories of their experiences apart from each other, and for the first time in what seemed like an eternity, Hama smiled.

"You must have given them some fight," Nomi was saying. "I wish I could have seen it…the other waterbenders back home will be talking about it for years, I bet!"

Hama found she had nothing to say after this remark. She wanted to tell Nomi…_wished_ she could tell her the truth…but something inside stopped her. She looked into Nomi's bright eyes and saw something there—there was a fire that she thought would have flickered out long ago in a place like this. Nomi still had hope. She still had dreams and ambition. Hama couldn't bring herself to crush that. Not now. Nomi could never know that Hama was the last one…

Instead she changed the subject. "Where are the others?" she inquired.

Nomi shook her head. "We're the only ones in this block. She gestured to the side, indicating the other cells grouped with them. Hama gazed around and saw that the cells were arranged in groups of six, each block separated by a catwalk. "If we try to talk to anyone outside our block, the guards will hear us," Nomi went on. "So it's just you and me. There used to be more, but…" her voice trailed off and she looked away.

"Water break! You two, get away from your cell walls." Hama's head snapped around to see Ken-Xing at the far end of the room, flanked by four guards. She winked at Nomi and quickly did as she was asked.

Ken-Xing approached Hama's cell first. "Well my dear…I do hope you're comfortable."

Hama stared back and stoically kept silent.

Her lack of rebuttal seemed to amuse Ken-Xing further. "I'm sure you'll get used to it. In the meantime…" He motioned to two of the guards beside him.

Before Hama really knew what was happening, the guards had climbed inside her cell and grabbed her arms. Swiftly they chained her arms between the opposite walls of her cell and held her shoulders firmly, forcing her to kneel with her arms suspended in the air. Another guard extended a small tin cup towards her on a long metal pole. The fourth stood by at the ready, small flames dancing in his open palms.

Hama saw that the little cup was filled with water. Only then did it occur to her how thirsty she actually was. As soon as the cup reached her lips she bent her head down, drinking greedily from the little vessel. The water was dirty; she could taste the minerals in it and could feel minute grains of sand sifting through her mouth, sliding under her tongue and lodging themselves between her teeth. She didn't care.

When the ritual was finished the two guards surrounding her undid her shackles and climbed out of her cell. Ken-Xing gave a dismissive flick of his wrist and they unceremoniously slammed the cell door shut. Hama could hear the lock click ominously.

Ken-Xing and his guards moved on, and Hama watched them perform the same procedure on Nomi. Afterward they moved on further down the catwalk, giving tiny drinks to others who were too far away to see, too far away to even think about trying to talk to.

Hama slumped back into a corner of her cell. Was this all she had to look forward to? Was she condemned to spend the rest of her life in this iron hell? Even Nomi couldn't cheer her up. Not now. With bitter tears welling in her eyes, Hama laid her head down on her arms as comfortably as she could and faded into a restless sleep.

* * *

Three weeks came and went, though to Hama it seemed like three decades. There were no windows in this prison room, only thick metal walls. There was a barred grate in the ceiling above that was covered during rainfall, but it was too far up to notice or care about. No sunshine or clouds to cheer her. No sunset to lull her off to sleep. To make matters worse, Hama was sick. She had recently come down with a strange cough, and now she could hardly breathe. It felt as though someone had put a pillow on her face and was firmly pressing down. But deep down, for some sick reason, she was almost glad. Maybe her time here was almost at an end.

"Hama? Are you okay?" That was Nomi. Hama was too weak to pick her head up and look at her, but she knew. Nomi's gentle voice would never fail to warm her heart. She was probably the one thing that had kept Hama sane throughout her ordeal thus far. She had no idea what she'd do without her.

"It's not that bad," Hama rasped. "Besides…maybe it's a blessing in disguise."

"Don't say that," Nomi scolded, her voice uncharacteristically hard. "Don't even think about that. What would I do without you? You're all I have now. Don't you think about leaving me alone."

Hama smiled at her friend's rebuke. "Of course…what was I thinking? I'm sorry, Nomi. I just feel…so tired now. That's all." Her voice was now nothing more than a whisper.

She could practically feel Nomi's smile. "I have something for you, Hama. It may help."

Hama opened her mouth to ask exactly what it was, but at that moment, a cool rush flooded her senses, and the pain in the back of her throat lessened. She realized that she had just swallowed a mouthful of water. Cool, clean water.

She sat up slowly, feeling a little better already. "Where—where did you get that?"

If at all possible, Nomi smiled even wider. "The roof leaks above my cell. Water sometimes runs down the chains from the ceiling, and if I'm lucky I can catch it. The guards don't know about it…otherwise I'd have been moved by now."

_Or you'd be dead,_ Hama mused darkly.

"Here," Nomi went on. "It's the last of what I've saved from the last rainfall. You need it more than I do."

Hama gratefully accepted the second mouthful of water, feeling more rejuvenated by the minute. "Thank you so much Nomi…you don't know how much this means to me. You need to be careful though…you can't be caught doing that."

Nomi's smile never faltered for a second. "Don't worry about that. You're my friend Hama…it's the least I could do." She lay down on her cell floor and motioned for Hama to do the same. "You need rest. I'll talk to you in a few hours."

Hama nodded and lay down as well. Nomi was right, of course. She quickly drifted off to sleep, dreaming of the South Pole and penguin-sledding and her mother's embrace.

* * *

Not even an hour after Hama had drifted off she was awoken again by a commotion outside her cell. She yawned. It seemed like only minutes. In her groggy state she could only make out loud, masculine voices. She wondered what Ken-Xing was raging about now.

"You used waterbending when you knew it was forbidden!" the prison master roared.

_That_ woke Hama fully, and she tilted her head to see Nomi in the grasp of two prison guards on the catwalk right outside her cell. She stared in horror as Ken-Xing continued to berate her. "You little Water Tribe filth…you thought you could get away with this, didn't you?"

"No," Nomi protested, her voice cracking. "I didn't mean that at all—"

"_Silence!_ You broke the rules. You will pay the price. Guards! Take her for a walk down the hallway."

Hama watched as Nomi was led away with Ken-Xing in tow. She wanted to cry. She wanted to _die._ She'd have given anything to switch places with Nomi right now. "Don't you think about leaving me alone," she whispered desperately, remembering Nomi's words to her earlier.

Miraculously, as if she had heard her, Nomi turned around to glance at Hama. She was scared, Hama could tell, but she found the will to wink and give a small smile. Behind her back, she flashed a thumbs-up. She and Ken-Xing disappeared down the catwalk, obscured by the darkness.

Hama lay down against the cold steel of her cell and wept miserably. Nomi…she had meant the world to her. She was all she had in this dark, horrific cage. She wanted to think she'd pull through. Nomi had always had hope. Even when she had nothing else at all, she had hope. _She can't leave me…_

Hama tried to sleep. She closed her eyes, tried to block everything else out and sleep. She'd see her friend in the morning, she was sure of it. She'd be sitting in the cell beside her, laughing in high spirits. But she couldn't sleep. Not this time.

Nomi's terrible screams made sure of that.

* * *

The next day, Hama was silent. She didn't stir, she didn't even bother to get up when Ken-Xing came around with water. She refused to drink. Ken-Xing got angry and took her to his quarters again, which she endured with a haunting silence. She wanted to pretend she was dead. She wanted nothing more than to join her friend and be rid of this place forever. She still half-expected Nomi to come walking back down the catwalk. She'd climb back into her cell and the two would share stories and keep each other's spirits up, just like they used to.

Hama began to weep. Her tears flowed down her petite face, and for the first time since she had arrived, she felt cold. So unbearably cold. She gazed upward out through the grate in the ceiling and saw the full moon staring back down at her, almost defying her to do _something_. She felt oddly refreshed by it, and a small flicker of hope danced in her chest.

She _would_ do something. She would escape. And she'd make them all pay. All of them. The guards, Ken-Xing…the entire Fire Nation. They would all pay dearly.

As thoughts of revenge filled Hama's mind, her features actually bent into a smile for the first time in an eternity. It wasn't her usual smile though. She laughed as well, quietly at first, but then louder as she went on. It wasn't her usual laugh either. Her smile used to be beautiful and full; now it was slightly crooked. Her laugh had been melodious and light; now it almost sounded like a high cackle.

Oh, she would make them pay.

Welcome home, indeed. It never felt so good to be alive.

* * *

I had debated with myself at first over just how far I should take the opening scene. I think I found a nice balance, but hey, feel free to yell at me otherwise.

Trust me, there will be more. And I promise they won't all be as dark as this one. Deal?


	3. Fireflies

I don't claim to own any aspect of _Avatar: The Last Airbender._ This work has been written without permission and isn't intended for any profit.

This story originally spawned out of this idea that I'd been saving for a long time. I absolutely loved it, so I excitedly started writing. But then I got about half a page in and started to hate it. I kept writing anyway, and lo and behold, by the end I loved it again. So if you're keeping score, I guess that means I love this story. Which is absolutely true.

* * *

**Fireflies**

The evening had scarcely fallen and sure enough there they were, doing it again. Right outside the house. It had been this way for as long as she could remember, ever since she had been a little girl. She smiled slightly as she thought of the times when she would go outside and join them.

_But not anymore._ Song had been happy then. Now it just didn't feel right. The war was over and yet there was still a hole in her heart to fill, one that wouldn't go away until her father finally returned. And the fireflies continued to dance, filling the garden outside with their warm, ethereal light.

Song sighed as she leaned against the windowsill, watching the spectacle. She felt like the girl at the ball who couldn't find a partner.

"Song? Dear, are you still awake?" Her mother approached her from behind and took a seat beside the girl.

Song's gaze didn't leave the window. "I'm not tired."

"Apparently not," her mother laughed. "I thought you'd gone to bed hours ago."

Song didn't return the laugh, though she did allow a small smile. That was all she would allow nowadays. It just didn't seem right. The war was over, so why wasn't her father home yet? It wasn't fair. She found herself silently cursing the firelord; Zuko, whoever he was. _He_ was the one behind all of this…

_No._ She banished the thought from her mind and forced herself to think about something else. Hate would only make it worse…only make it more painful. Her smile returned as she watched the fireflies. Their dance was eternal—a never-ending waltz to a tempo only they could feel, to a tune only they could hear and understand. Song sometimes thought that if she listened hard enough, she could hear the melody to which they twirled and spun so gracefully. But so far, she'd heard nothing.

"You miss him, don't you?"

Song turned to her mother at this inquiry, not sure of what to say. After a noticeable delay, she said, "Yes. So much." Her voice was soft, level.

Her mother smiled warmly, and Song could almost feel herself in her father's arms right then and there. The power of a mother's smile never ceased to amaze her. "I miss him too," her mother said gently. "But I know he'll come back. You have to hold on to what you have, Song. And right now, I have you…and I have hope. And those are two things that I wouldn't give up for anything in the world." She gave her daughter a small hug and got up. "I'm going to bed. Don't stay up all night, okay?" She turned and retreated to her room.

Song's gaze returned to the fireflies, though now she felt an altogether different mix of emotions than before. She wasn't sure quite how to explain it. She had her mother, and she cared about her. And she had hope… Spirits knew she had all the hope in the world. And she cared about that. Maybe her mother was right…she knew what was important, and she had to hold on to it and never let it go.

Slowly, she got up. _Maybe I'll go and visit them again,_ she thought. _Just this once._ A soft, warm breeze blew through the open window and around her body in a gentle caress, as though it approved of her decision. Song appreciated the encouragement and slid open the broad wooden door leading to the front garden.

As she stepped out onto the porch and then down onto the smooth, time-worn stepping stones that formed a trail through the moist grass, Song's mind was flooded with memories of warm summer nights, long ago. As a little girl, she'd run and jump and spin around until she was dizzy, laughing as the fireflies would follow her in her elaborate steps. She would lead, they would follow. And sometimes her father would join her, picking her up and whirling her round and round in her arms, the sound of his laughter in perfect harmony with hers. And she'd laugh as she retreated back into the sanctity of her home, waving at her friends, promising she'd be back the next day.

But one day she didn't return. That was the day the Fire Nation raided their village, taking all the men as prisoners. Song was waiting that night for her father to come and dance with her, but he was nowhere to be found. She asked her mother where he was, saying that the fireflies wouldn't wait for them. Her mother turned away, tears in her eyes, and could only say that she didn't know.

Song never danced with the fireflies again.

And now, as she crossed the garden to the wooden fence that marked the edge of their land, the fireflies seemed to beckon her, calling for the dance that they had been waiting for so long. But she couldn't answer. There was something missing now.

"I'm sorry…" she whispered to no one as she reached the fence.

She spotted the small hut next to the path that led to their house. It had once housed an ostrich-horse, several months ago. It was then that she remembered Lee and his uncle. When she'd talked to Lee, she felt like he could understand what she was going through. The boy had lost his father as well, and she took pity on him. His scar seemed to reflect all that he had been through in his life—his struggles, his hardships, his perseverance over all that had stood in his path. But in the end, he had stolen the animal, and Song was crushed—she'd really grown to like the young man. But heartbreak was nothing new for her by then.

She sighed as she stared into the empty hut, a pile of straw still filling a corner of the structure. They hadn't bothered to replace the animal. Maybe someday—

"Hello Song."

Thoroughly startled, Song spun around to come face to face with _him_. The person she'd met all those months ago…the one who'd betrayed her trust, and the one who she definitely hadn't expected to see again, much less holding her ostrich-horse's reins in one hand.

"It took me a long time, but I tracked him down," he said with a small smile. He handed the reins over to the girl without another word.

Song wasn't really sure what to say. She numbly took the reins and tied them to a wooden post just outside the hut. Finally she found her voice. "Lee? Why did you come back?"

He sighed. "I wanted to apologize for what I did. It was wrong of me. I was confused back then, but that isn't an excuse. So I'm here to make things right." He paused as though debating whether or not to go on and his hand instinctively reached up and touched the left side of his face. "Oh…and my name isn't Lee."

Song's gaze fell and met the ground at Lee's feet. She was torn between so many feelings right now. She wanted to slap Lee, yell at him for hurting her like that. She wanted to hug him for apologizing so gallantly. Most of all, she was confused. But her mother had taught her something important that evening…she needed to stop hating if she was to hold on to what she held most dear to her. "I forgive you, Lee," she said softly. "But who are you, really?"

"He'll come back," Lee interjected as though he'd completely ignored what she'd just said.

"What?" Song was even more confused than before.

"Your father. You'll see him again," Lee said resolutely. "I know how hard it's been for you all these years, and I'm sorry for what you and your mother have had to go through. One day soon he'll come marching back through this gate with his head high and proud, ready to meet his family again. I promise you that." He stopped for a moment. "The _firelord_ promises you."

Song was dumbstruck. Her gaze was fixed on Lee's eyes, and she could feel the tears coming. Quickly she looked down as they fell, not wanting him to see. She had to be strong now…didn't she?

And then, something occurred to her, and she looked up, saying, "It's you! You're the firelord. You're—"

Lee was gone.

Song stood frozen to that spot for what seemed like a very long time. For the longest time she didn't know what to think. But she felt different. She felt warm now, as though a small fire had been lit inside her. It spread all over her body and she smiled wider than she had in a long time as she wiped away the last stray tears.

The walk back across the garden was different as well. She was at peace now—she could put away all of the bitter anger that she had held before. And as she stood in the middle of the garden, the gentle breeze blowing all around her, she could feel it melt away. And as it did, she could have sworn she heard music.

She looked around. The fireflies still waited for her to take the lead.

Slowly but surely, as though she'd been waiting for this moment ever since her childhood, she began to dance. Her movements were slow and deliberate at first, but they soon sped up and became ever more elaborate as she swayed, spun, and pirouetted along with her old friends. "I've missed you," she whispered softly.

The breeze continued its accompaniment. It sifted gently through the trees and the grass, creating a song of rustling leaves as the foliage sang merrily in a rapturous tune.

Song laughed as she lost herself in the melody.

* * *

Song is one of my all-time favorite secondary characters from the show…so yeah. I've wanted to write a story about her for a long time, and I finally got the opportunity!


End file.
